Sylvester Stallone's The Expendables will hit store shelves on DVD and Blu-ray on November 23. The standard DVD will be priced at $29.95 SRP and the Blu-ray, which will also include a copy of the standard DVD and a Digital Copy disc, will be priced at $39.99 SRP. The movie stars Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, Steve Austin, Mickey Rourke, Terry Crews and Bruce Willis. You can take a look at the DVD and Blu-ray artwork below:

The Expendables is a hard-hitting action/thriller about a group of mercenaries hired to infiltrate a South American country and overthrow its ruthless dictator. Once the mission begins, the men realize things arent quite as they appear, finding themselves caught in a dangerous web of deceit and betrayal. With their mission thwarted and an innocent life in danger, the men struggle with an even tougher challenge one that threatens to destroy this band of brothers.

Dolph Lundgren discusses the biggest action hit of the year that arrives on Blu-ray and DVD November 23rd

The Expendables was one of last summer's biggest hits, garnering writer/director/star Sylvester Stallone his best opening weekend of all time. Of course, he had a little help from his friends, with an ensemble crew that contains some of the hardest hitting action icons of all time. Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Statham, Jet Li, and Steve Austin were but a few who showed up. Among the fan favorites in the cast was Dolph Lundgren, who returned to reteam with Sly for the first time since their brutal boxing match to the near death in Rocky IV.

Lundgren plays Gunner Jensen, best friend of Barney Ross (Stallone), leader of The Expendables. He is a crazy loose cannon that eventually gets kicked off the team for his own good. The role offered Dolph a chance to really shine on the big screen. Not only an actor, the man is also a director and a certified genius. And a hell of a nice man. We recently caught up with Dolph to celebrate the release of The Expendables on DVD and Blu-ray this Tuesday, November 23rd.

Not only did we chat about the movie, but we also talked about The Expendables 2, his possible on-screen reunion with Jean-Claude Van Damme in Universal Soldier IV, his directing career, and a whole lot more. Here is our conversation:

This summer, two of the most anticipated, original genre films happened to open on the same day. Audiences went to see The Expendables instead of the other one. How do you think that speaks to what fans truly want to see today, especially in terms of their on-screen heroes?

Dolph Lundgren: When you say "The other one," are you speaking about the Julia Roberts picture?

No, I was actually referring to Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. They are both action movies. They both had genre fans excited. Except the lead characters are at two extremely different ends of the spectrum...

Dolph Lundgren: Okay, I thought maybe you were talking about Julia Roberts. Because, I actually went to see that movie. I thought it was pretty good. But lets see...I don't know, because I never saw that Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World picture. I knew it was a big deal. It's a video game, right?

It was originally based on a comic book.

Dolph Lundgren: See, there you go. My generation doesn't know about that. The baby boomers had been waiting around for their quote-unquote action picture to come out. I just read an article about baby boomers. They are underestimated as consumers these days. Once you turn fifty or fifty-five, everyone cuts you off their list. But they still have a lot of money. And they all went to see The Expendables. It has a great cast. A lot of those guys and gals grew up on some of the movies we made back in the day. On another side of the spectrum, from what I can tell when I move around and talk to the fans, they like MMA, they like real fights. They dig the old school action more than some of the stuff in-between. Those newer films. Its fake in the way it works. Someone will still be standing up after taking a thousand kicks to the head. Maybe that's why...

Stallone wrote the part of Gunner with you in mind. And he wrote him in as his own character's best friend. When you read the script, did you see a lot of the elements from your own personal relationship with Sly on the page?

Dolph Lundgren: No. I love this character, and I love that they are friends. But I read it as a drama. This guy? Jensen? He has a big arc. He is very colorful, and he has a lot of problems. When you are playing a role, the more problems the guy has, the easier it is to play him. Because you have something to do. You have some obstacles. The fact that we were friends in the movie was kind of cool. Because people have seen us in film before, but we were enemies. They had never seen us together like this on screen. I think the strength of that relationship shows up in this picture.

Stallone directed you in Rocky IV. I think that was only the fourth or fifth film that he directed. Now, a few years down the road, he is once again directing you in this. Did you notice anything different about his approach to directing this time around?

Dolph Lundgren: I was very inexperienced when I worked with him the first time. Since then, I have made about thirty or forty movies. He is still the same guy. It was a similar experience. On Rocky IV he was very detailed oriented. He was very intense. He didn't leave anything to chance. He wants it right. He keeps shooting until he gets it. It was the same this time. I'd worked with other directors in-between. Like Roland Emmerich and John Woo. There is a certain intensity to Sly that these other people don't have. There is another level. Obviously, he has matured a bit as a man. I think he took more time in talking to the actors about their performances. Maybe he was a little more patient. Basically, ninety percent of it was the same. It was physically intense. He has a "take no prisoners" type of attitude as a director.

One of the things that has changed between the 80s action movies, and today's action movies is the violence. Which Stallone really upped the stakes with in Rambo 4. How has that changed your own process as an action director when you take on a project of your own? Knowing that it has to always go to that next level of intensity?

Dolph Lundgren: What has changed in the pictures, I feel, is that up until now, it has been very CGI driven. Those things come and go full circle. I think people are coming back to doing in-camera effects to make it look more real. I suppose, with the violence, you are trying to make it gritty and more real. I always liked those films, anyway. I think there is a way to do this. I am still learning as a director. I have only made five movies. But I think there is a way to get violent, and not show too much. Like Gladiator, which was very violent in one way. But you only think you are seeing a guy's head being cut off. You don't really see it. I think that is the way I would like to do it in the future. Basically, it is moving back to these in-camera effects and realism. The CGI looks fake. And I think it dates the film, too.

With the 3D, there is this problem, where you can't really cheat the punches anymore. You can see the space in the depth between the fist and the face. So directors who are having to utilize 3D are having to actually have their A list actors punch each other in the face. From what I understand, you guys are shooting the next Universal Soldier in 3D, so you will have to actually punch and kick each other to make it look more real in what you are shooting...

Dolph Lundgren: That is an interesting point. I had never thought of that. I did look at doing 3D on my next picture. The studios love 3D, and they are always asking me to shoot in 3D. Well. Not always, but on this next one. They want to know how much its going to cost. But yeah, maybe that realism is an aspect of it. I think the attitude is changing, because young kids are watching MMA. They are more aware of real violence. There was this generation in-between who were really excited about the CGI aspect of the violence. But the reality got lost. I think those days are gone.

I grew up in the 80s, watching your films, and the CGI today just doesn't cut it. It's always too fake looking, and it does date a film pretty badly when its used wrong.

Dolph Lundgren: It was fun for a while.

Stallone recently opened up his Twitter account, and he uses it mostly to give updates on The Expendables 2. What do you know about the sequel? And has he approached you with any ideas yet?

Dolph Lundgren: I probably know less than you. I haven't watched his stuff. I haven't listened to his "tweet-tweets". But I just know that he is working on the script. I think he is bringing back some of the characters, including Jensen, from what I hear. But I don't know for sure. I have not read the script. At one point they were taking about Bulgaria. Then they were taking about going to Mexico. To deal with drug dealers, I suppose. Those are people we could whack, and no one would really care. Not too much. Not if they were drug traffickers. I think that is what he might be looking at.

Drug traffickers? Your next directorial gig is a movie called Skin Trade? About human trafficking, right?

Dolph Lundgren: I am working on it. I am not a hundred percent sure yet.

During the press rounds for Rambo, Stallone had mentioned that he wanted to have Rambo involved in human trafficking. Have you guys talked about the similarities in these projects. Is that a possible storyline for The Expendables 2?

Dolph Lundgren: Did we talk about the idea of human trafficking? No, we didn't, actually. I started on this idea about five years ago. That was quite a while ago. But I never really got a chance to make it. I'd been working on the script. But no, we never discussed that aspect.

Its interesting to me, because it's a great idea for your stand alone project, but it also seems like it would jive well with The Expendables.

Dolph Lundgren: I hope we don't end up with the same story. We start shooting next summer. That means we'll be in prep in March. It's a big movie. That means the script has to be ready in January. So it will come up pretty fast here.

Is that Skin Trade you are talking about?

Dolph Lundgren: No, The Expendables 2.

What do you hope to see happen with your character in the sequel? I mean, your character was one that the fans really loved...

Dolph Lundgren: Well, thanks. I think it would be great to be on screen a little more. But, also, I think the most important thing is to keep Gunner troubled. And to keep him an outsider to some extent. I think that would be important. I think people expect that. And it balances the team a little bit. If he is a wild card, you don't really know what is going to happen with Jensen. He is apt to change his mind and go his own way. I think that makes for a more exciting picture.

There is a lot of talk about who will be in the sequel. Stallone want to bring in some guys, he wants to keep some guys. Who would you like to see show up for The Expendables 2?

Dolph Lundgren: I think Jean-Claude Van Damme would be fun. I'd love to see him in it as a bad guy. Because he has never really played that. I think that would be a big draw. The other guys that I really like in the genre are Wesley Snipes. Vin Diesel. There are a few guys that I really like. There are a few young guys that I really like, too. It could be interesting. There is always Chuck Norris, of course (laughs).

Kurt Russell was another big one that keeps coming up...

Dolph Lundgren: Oh, yeah! Cool! Snake!

I want to know your thoughts on having Ryan Seacrest in the sequel. Stallone has been pushing this, and I guess its not a joke...

Dolph Lundgren: I don't even hardly know who he is...Who is he? Ryan Seacrest? Who is that?

He is the host of American Idol, and he is the anchor of E! News.

Dolph Lundgren: Ah. I know who he is. Okay. Well, if he does join the sequel, I don't know what he is going to be doing. Maybe he can play some CIA guy or something. I don't think we'll have him lifting heavy machine guns at the back of the team (laughs).

In bringing up Van Damme, you guys are reuniting for another Universal Soldier movie? Correct? Are you both going to be in it more? That last one was basically about the two MMA fighters that were in it. Not so much you guys.

Dolph Lundgren: Look, I haven't seen the script. There was a script. I didn't like it. I haven't even signed yet, so I don't know what is going to happen. It all depends on the scheduling and how it all goes. I like director John Hyams. I just think that, yeah, you are right, people got a little disappointed because they wanted to see much more of myself and Jean-Claude Van Damme. I was starring in The Expendables at the time, so I couldn't be in it more.

You guys have one really great fight scene in that last one, and that is it. The rest of the movie we're waiting for you guys to show up...

Dolph Lundgren: I know!

From what I understand, you are going to be working with Uwe Boll...

Dolph Lundgren: Yeah. I am doing a little thing with him. Its just an acting gig for a few weeks, coming up in December.

He is such an interesting man. He is like the evil villain of filmmakers...

Dolph Lundgren: (Laughs) I guess he will be tangling with me, then. We'll see how it goes!

Your Expendables co-star Jason Statham was in the first In the Name of the King. You are sort of taking over for him. Did you have any discussions with Jason about taking on this Uwe Boll project?

Dolph Lundgren: With Jason? No. I didn't.

What about this other project called Take Back? You are re-teaming with Steve Austin. Danny Trejo is in there. Can you talk about that project a little bit?

Dolph Lundgren: That project? I had never heard about it. I only just saw it on the Internet. I don't know who posted that on there. That is the blessing of the wonderful IMDB. I've never heard of it. I haven't seen a script. I haven't talked to any of those guys. I don't know why that is on there.

I guess that is just someone wishful casting...

Dolph Lundgren: It looks like it. Yes.

Maybe someone is just trying to get you interested in it?

Dolph Lundgren: Yeah. It worked. I'd be interested to see what that is.

That's what's crazy about the internet. Everyone assumed that you were signed to do another Universal Soldier, but that isn't a definite. You're not signed to that, either...

Dolph Lundgren: No. I don't even know if Jean-Claude Van Damme is signed up for that. I don't know what is going on. That is another strange part of this business. Who knows? We'll have to wait and see.

The Expendables was released August 13th, 2010 and stars Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts, Randy Couture, Steve Austin, David Zayas. The film is directed by Sylvester Stallone.

The champion MMA fighter goes head-to-head with Steve Austin in this action-packed Blu-ray and DVD release

The Expendables was one of this summer's biggest hits, and it finally arrives on Blu-ray and DVD today, November 23rd. Sylvester Stallone directs an all-star cast, assembling the world's greatest tough-guy actors in one legendary action ensemble. This hard-hitting thriller features Sly, along with his buddies Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, and Eric Roberts, just to name a few.

The story follows a group of mercenaries as they infiltrate South America to overthrow a ruthless dictator. While the movie is jam-packed full of incredible action sequences, one of the most exciting moments is a fight to the death between three-time world champion MMA fighter Randy Couture and former WWE Superstar Steve Austin (formerly known as Stone Cold). To celebrate this awesome new release, we caught up with Randy Couture to chat with him about his tussle with Steve, working with Sylvester Stallone, and the impending sequel.

Here is our conversation:

I like the beard. Did you grow that out for a part? Or did you just do that for personal preference?

Randy Couture: It was just for personal preference. I get tired of shaving. I was getting ready for my last fight. I took two weeks off from a razor blade. Then I decided I was going to let it grow out. I wanted to keep it for a while.

It's a little less intimidating when we see you with the beard than without it. I'm not sure why that is. But without that beard, you look like a stone cold killer.

Randy Couture: (Laughs) That is funny.

It brings a different, more intimidating look to your eyes! Now, I am not sure if you're familiar with Sylvester Stallone's Tweets? But he wants to bring Steve Austin back for the sequel. And Steven Austin seems to think his character is still alive. But anyone who has seen The Expendables knows that you decimate the man. What is your take on Austin's immanent return to this franchise? Do you think his character is still alive?

Randy Couture: He thinks he's still alive? Yeah, I suppose its possible that he survived the fire. Obviously he's going to be horribly maimed coming back. I got to ride back from the press junket in New York City with Sylvester Stallone and the rest of his folks. It was one of the things we discussed. He was tossing around some ideas for the sequel at that time. And we were both bummed that things had gone the way they'd gone. It appeared that Steve died. He did such a great job. And it was fun getting to hang out with him, and do those scenes. I felt bad. It appeared that he wouldn't get to do the sequel, because he does get killed. But you know Sly! There is always a way to work it out. There is always a way to work Steve back in. We'll see what happens. I haven't seen the new script, so I have no idea.

I heard that they were toying with the idea of Steve having a twin. Do you like that idea? Or does that make it too cartoonish?

Randy Couture: Eh, an evil twin would solve the issue. I know that Sly is very clever. He will come up with something.

Steve is pretty evil in the first movie. What do you think about making him a good guy this time around? I mean, it seems like he already played the "evil" twin...Or is that stupid?

Randy Couture: I don't know! Its tough to speculate and see how the new story is going to twist, and where we are going to end up. I don't know if there is anything that is stupid. I think anything is possible.

One of my favorite scenes in the movie, and it's a scene that got a lot of the fans excited, is when we see you going head-to-head with Steve in this no-holds-barred fist fight to the death. It's pretty spectacular. You both come from different worlds of fighting. How did you guys choreograph that scene together, and how did you work out the differences in your individual styles?

Randy Couture: Obviously, Sly made a decision that's how we were going to end it in the courtyard. We were going to come together. Both on the screen and in real life, there was a collusion of these two very popular worlds. Steve comes from the pro-wrestling world. He is obviously very popular. The new kids on the block are from the mixed martial arts crowd. To see two guys from both of those worlds colliding in a make-believe fight is something unique. Sly is very clever. Everyone gets excited about seeing that. They get excited when something like this takes a foray into mixed martial arts. And Steve Austin is one of the most popular guys from his area of entertainment.

Did you get to see the movie with a real crowd on opening weekend?

Randy Couture: We did. A couple of times. We did the premieres, and we also did a special screening for a bunch of the Marines down at Camp Pendleton. Everyone goes nuts. They are frenzied by the time we get to that point of the movie.

The excitement in the theater just goes up ten degrees when you step in front of Steve. It's a weird feeling to even describe. Its one of the great scenes in action movie history. What is cool about watching the movie is that Stallone really seemed interested in giving each of you guys your one true moment to shine on screen. Everyone in the cast gets at least one big "wow" moment...

Randy Couture: Yes! Yes! I think he worked very diligently to make sure that was the case. I think he realized that he was dealing with a whole bunch of us who all had our own thing. We have our own audiences from all the other stuff we've done. That was the trick. That was the hardest part of having all those guys together. Making sure that we all had a fair shake. I think he did a pretty remarkable job of it.

Sly wants to make five or six of these things. In this first movie, we don't see a lot of backstory. Though, in the build-up to the big action climax, you do have that great dialogue scene about your ear. Why did you feel this was a good venue to include a discussion about that personal topic?

Randy Couture: I didn't decide anything. Sly wrote that scene specifically for me. I thought it was a lot of fun, and very cool. From an explanation point. I thought that all of my college-wrestling buddies would get a huge kick out of that. It wasn't my decision. Sly wanted to do it. Who am I to disagree? I just went with it. I'm not sure if it's on the Blu-ray, or what. But you do get to see the whole rant. They cut it down for the final version of the movie. It was cut into a third of what we actually did that day. But they put it back in. I am anxious to see how the whole thing came out.

Is that going to just be a deleted scene? Or is that scene being placed back into an unrated cut of the movie?

Randy Couture: I think that will be in an unrated, or director's cut, of the film. I am not sure.

I didn't get to see that version. I did watch the bloopers on the DVD, though, and they are a little bit different from the normal blooper reel where the cast and crew seem to be having fun. Sly seems very serious here. Like, people are afraid to laugh...

Randy Couture: There was some joking around. I thought the gag reel was pretty funny. We had some fun doing everything that we did. Sly wasn't a slave driver. I think that he was wearing a lot of hats. Sometimes there were three units going all at one time during the making of the movie. And he is watching all of it. He is doing all of the re-writes. Plus he is in front of the camera for a ton of the scenes. I don't know how he did all of that. Anyone doing that much, working nights that whole time, there is no way they're not going to be intense. And he is an intense person. That's funny that's how the blooper reel came across.

Sly always has such a great sense of humor about himself and his work whenever you see him on a talk show, or on the red carpet. So he's not all business...

Randy Couture: He is very funny.

In talking about the upcoming sequel, do you hope to see more of a backstory given for this group of mercenaries? Or their own individual stories?

Randy Couture: I hope that's the case. But people go to this type of movie for a certain thing. And a big dramatic backstory probably isn't it. Knowing Sly, he'll find a way to work that in. To tell that, and still make it part of the action. I really don't know what to expect going into the second one. I haven't had a chance to see the script yet. I think its still in the works. But I am excited to see what direction we are headed.

Stallone's script doesn't follow the traditional three-act beat structure of most action movies. He has a decidedly different flow to his narrative, much like the last Rambo. What did you think when you first got a hold of the script and read it?

Randy Couture: The first thing that struck me was...I got the script and read through the whole thing, I really liked the characters and the whole story, I liked the action and how it worked out. But then about a month later, the real incident with the Navy SEALS and the Somali Pirates actually happened. When that came on the news, I was like, "What?" I was shocked to hear the opening scene from the movie script I had read a month before was playing out in some fashion in the real news. I thought that was incredible. That was the first thing that struck me about the script. It was using elements of the real world. It wasn't just make believe. He worked that in.

Do you know what current topic Sly might tackle next with the sequel? With the last Rocky, and the last Rambo, and this, he certainly has his finger on the pulse of the world...

Randy Couture: With the global economy the way it is right now, a huge thing has become these kidnappings for ransom. There have been a few cities identified around the world. As someone who travels a fair amount, I have read some articles and I have seen some things. There are a lot of kidnappings for ransoms going on. Having shot in Brazil; that is one of those places that has been identified as a problem area for that sort of thing. I know Mexico City has a problem with the cartel, and all the stuff that is going on down there. That has hit the news a few times as well. Some of these people have been kept locked up for years. It's just insane. That is something just off the top of my head that occurs to me. I have no idea what Sly is going to come up with.

Its known that Stallone wants to bring back all of the Expendables that we see hanging out inside Mickey Rourke's tattoo shop at the end of the movie. But he also wants to bring in some new guys. Who are some of the older action stars, and some of the newer action stars, that you want to see added in The Expendables 2? Who is your dream cast this next time around?

Randy Couture: I don't know whom I would add to the list. I was so excited with the chemistry we had before. There was no drama. There were no issues. I almost hesitate to see anyone added to this, for fear that it now gets screwed up. Sly covered all of his bases with the first one. It will be interesting to see whom he has gotten to know, whom he has talked to, and how it will work out for the second one. Who we end up bringing in, and how it goes.

That is interesting to me. I haven't heard anyone else express the concern that bringing in new guys would spoil the chemistry. And that is a very legitimate concern. It could screw things up a little bit. None of the original Expendables died in this first movie...

Randy Couture: No. Nobody died. Everybody comes out the other end in the first one.

What about Dolph? Did he originally die? And then get brought back at the end because of overwhelming test screening demand?

Randy Couture: My take on that? It was always Sly's intention to have that reveal. You thought Dolph was gone, then you have this reveal that he didn't die. That Sly didn't kill him. Again, I am not in the position to be making those decisions, or to be in that loop. That was just the way I understood it.

What are you doing removed from The Expendables franchise? What other movies are you currently working on?

Randy Couture: I have been reading a lot of scripts. I turned down a few projects over the course of the summer. Most of which were straight-to-DVD projects that weren't going to help me stay on the path that I am on. I just agreed to play a role in a Bruce Willis movie that is shooting next month. In Michigan. It's called The Set Up. I am looking forward to that. I play a very angry, interesting gangster. Pete. We're also talking about several other scripts that are somewhere in the process. Some of those are lead characters. And obviously, I will be doing The Expendables 2 sometime in the spring.

Were there any big superhero franchises that you were looking into?

Randy Couture: I did look into a few, and so far, I have not landed any of those characters. In my sport, I got the nickname Captain America. Everyone was asking me if I was going to try out for that movie. As far as I know, I haven't heard anymore about that movie. I don't know. I think I still have some real hurdles to get over in being considered a real actor at this stage. They are still looking at me as a fighter and not a real actor. Certainly, The Expendables was a big help.

You got your start in a David Mamet film. Red Belt. I would think that would be a pretty good calling card right there...

Randy Couture: I certainly think that doing anything with David Mamet gives you some credibility. That didn't hurt at all. David was very supportive of where I am at, and what I am trying to do. That certainly helps. I'd like the opportunity to do more dramatic roles. I don't want to just play thugs and knuckleheads because I am a big, muscular guy. I would like to play some more dramatic characters. I would like to do other stuff. I think it's going to take more time. I think we are headed in the right direction. We are trying to make good decisions about the roles I get involved in. I am certainly happy to be involved in action films. It's a genre that I have always liked. We'll have to see how it all unfolds and how it all works out.

The Expendables: Blu-ray and DVD arrives in stores Tuesday, November 23rd.

The Expendables was released August 13th, 2010 and stars Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts, Randy Couture, Steve Austin, David Zayas. The film is directed by Sylvester Stallone.